The purpose of this paper is to discuss three different phobias: agoraphobia, simple phobia, and social phobia, and to give a common treatment plan for all of them. A phobia can be described as: “an overwhelming and unreasonable fear of an object or situation that poses little real danger but provokes anxiety and avoidance” (Mayo Clinic).
Agoraphobia is phobia which makes individuals feel nervous about being in situations, places or locations where it might be embarrassing or hard to leave. Examples include: being in an elevator, or an enclosed space which is filled with a lot of people. In very difficult cases, a sufferer may never want to go out from their home (Mental Health America).
Social phobia is a phobia which causes an individual to worry about being embarrassed or humiliated when they are in the midst of others. This phobia could also be connected to feelings of having a low social status.
A simple phobia is a phobia which generates extreme fearfulness of a specific situation or object, when in reality, it is comparatively safe. Sufferers are mindful that this is an irrational fear, yet the idea of confronting the situation or object frequently brings on intense anxiety or a panic attack (Mental Health America).
At the present time, there are treatment programs which can help sufferers deal with these three phobias. Courses of cognitive-behavioral therapy or behavioral therapy with a registered practitioner can be extremely efficient in helping. Behavioral therapy concentrates on: “changing specific actions and uses different techniques to stop this behavior” (Mental Health America), and cognitive therapy is a form of talking therapy which helps sufferers: “become aware of inaccurate or negative thinking so…[they] can view challenging situations more clearly and respond to them in a more effective way” (Mayo Clinic).
- Mayo Clinic “Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.” n.d. Web. 15 March, 2016
- Mayo Clinic. “Phobias.” 8 February, 2014. Web. 15 March, 2016
- Mental Health America. “Phobias.” n.d. Web. 15 March, 2016
